


The Hatching of Princes

by fandom_susceptible



Series: Seeker Elite Trine [1]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Chapter One is all fluff, Fluff, Gen, Hatching, Minor Character Death, Prince Seekers, Prince Thundercracker - Freeform, Royalty, Seekers lay eggs, Those only in second chapter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-23
Updated: 2017-07-23
Packaged: 2018-12-05 07:43:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11573508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandom_susceptible/pseuds/fandom_susceptible
Summary: Thundercracker is a calm, collected, serious young prince.  That all falls away the day his brothers hatch.





	1. The Hatching

**Author's Note:**

> Thundercracker is around the equivalent of sixteen, hatched in a previous clutch as the only survivor. Starscream and Skywarp are the surviving eggs here.

     A surprised trill from his carrier caught the attention of youngwing Prince Thundercracker, who turned from his studies to look at the nest in alarm.  But Carrier was smiling as he shifted to look down at the eggs. "Carrier?" He asked anyway.  Were they hatching already?

     His carrier looked up, casting him a smile as well. "They're ready," He said. "Come here, Thundercracker, you should see this.  One day you may be leading them as a Trine, after all."

     Thundercracker set aside his datapad and came, kneeling just outside the nest, tall enough to see in without entering.  He watched with curiosity as the eggs twitched and shook.  The hatchlings inside were clearly struggling to get out.  He hardly noticed the rush of wind and engines, the door opening and closing, that announced his sire's arrival, because at the same moment one of the eggs cracked, a tiny set of claws breaking through.

     The High Prince didn't keep his distance as his son was doing, instead carefully joining his Conjunx Endura and their hatching eggs in the nest.  He knelt opposite Thundercracker, who glanced at him almost nervously, excitement coursing through his lines.  His siblings were finally hatching!

     The hatchling who had already broken through began to strategically widen the hole in the side of its pale pink egg.  It broke the hole mostly down and to the sides, seeming already able to reason what would help it escape most. "A thinker, this one," the Prince's Consort said softly, optics on the egg.

     A loud crack from the lavender egg drew their attention as a pede kicked through the bottom, sending the egg over onto its side.  Thundercracker jerked, optics widening, scared for its safety.  A warm laugh from his carrier did some to ease his alarm, and he just watched, unsure of what to do or say.  The egg rolled a little before pausing, falling still - maybe dizzy?

     The pink egg's hole was almost wide enough for the hatchling to exit.  It didn't, seeming content to slowly demolish the shell.  The opening was wide enough now to see the hatchling, pinkish like the egg in his torso, pale blue markings elsewhere. "Certainly looks a Royal," The High Prince rumbled, tone affectionate.

     "As if yours could be anything less," his Consort replied with a brief wink at Thundercracker, who rarely received that particular compliment.  The navy youngwing hardly noticed, instead focused on the lavender egg as it cracked again, the other pede kicking through, rolling it close to him.  No connection formed between the holes and the hatchling seemed to be stuck, kicking and trying to open the eggshell.

     Thundercracker watched, almost amused until he felt his creators' fields shift.  He glanced up at them, seeing that they were focused on the lavender egg as well. "Sire?  Creatrix?" He asked hesitantly.

     "That one may not survive, cracking like that." His sire replied after a moment, frowning deeply.

     The navy youngwing tensed.  He knew as well as his creators - well, perhaps not that well - that normally Seekers were advised against helping hatchlings escape their eggs.  It was a survival strategy, like so much of their young lives.  Only the strong survived - why they were so much more physically successful than their weaker, groundbound neighbors.

     His creators had looked away, fixed on each other, obviously debating the issue over their bond.  Thundercracker looked despairingly down at his siblings as the pink hatchling finally tumbled out of their egg and sat up, looking around curiously through bleary new optics.  He spotted the lavender egg and chirped, inching over to it, poking it, and trilling as if in concern.

     That convinced him.  While his creators were busy, Thundercracker reached down with a claw and tapped the eggshell just between the hatchling's protruding legs, hoping to weaken it somewhat without just doing it for him.  After all, that first burst of strength required to get out was also important.  He jerked his hand back before his creators looked again, just as the shell cracked and a larger opening formed.  Relief flooded the three mature energy fields.  Continued kicking as the pink hatchling chirped had a pale purple hatchling tumbling out as they sent their eggshell rolling again.  It took a moment to sit up, swaying a little as if dizzy.

     Its pink sibling chirped happily and reached for it.  The purple hatchling looked blearily at it for a moment before returning a happy trill and reaching back, sending the two tumbling into their carrier's hip where he half-lay in the nest beside them.  They both froze and looked up.  He looked down affectionately, returning their happy trills with a loving hum.  They both reached up their hands in a pleading gesture, not sure what they wanted, and he picked them up, cradling them against his spark.

    The High Prince moved to clean up the eggshells.  Thundercracker shifted out of his way, but remained fixated on his siblings. "They're so cute," He commented.

    His carrier gave a hum of amusement. "Oh, they'll be as pretty as you and your sire when they're grown.  You weren't much different.  Blue - a little bigger, perhaps." He was holding them in one arm and letting them play with the claws of his other hand. "Do you want to hold them?"

     Thundercracker looked up with wide optics. "May I?"

     "Of course." His sire was the one who replied. "After all, if all goes well, one day you will be their trinemate.  It's best you all connect now, as I did with my brothers."

     Thundercracker nodded and climbed into the nest, sitting down out of the way of his sire but where he knew he was secure.  He couldn't drop them, he just couldn't.  He held out his arms and his carrier carefully shifted the hatchlings into them. "Both mechs," Carrier commented quietly, and was almost drowned out by the pink one's shriek of distress when his clutchmate was accidentally shifted too far from him.

     "By the stars, that's a voice," The High Prince commented, exasperated, from across the room. "I hope he doesn't grow out of it.  It will serve him well in the Council Chamber." The same had been said of Thundercracker's booming voice, though the youngwing had yet to see such advantage. "Any names striking you, love?"

     Thundercracker risked taking his optics from the hatchlings to look curiously as his carrier hummed, debating. "Perhaps." The Prince's Consort replied. "Some blessing for long life.  After all the others we've lost . . ."

     "Don't speak of it, you'll hurt yourself." He was cut off as the High Prince returned.

     Thundercracker looked back down at the hatchlings, who were yawning and cuddling up to him now.  He supposed it made sense - after all, they had just completed the most grueling experience of their currently short lifestreams.  He settled into his position a little more and cuddled them, humming and chirring softly to soothe them into recharge.

     "Until the wind stops, until the sky falls, until the stars scream, and we land for the very last time." He heard one of his creators murmur - their voices were similar, he couldn't tell which one.

     "Starscream," This was for certain his sire. "For the end of the end.  For hope that he'll live to see it." A claw was drawn down the pink hatchling's back, making him chirp sleepily and look back for it.

     "Skywarp," His carrier said in reply. "The other.  He seemed to almost warp from his egg the moment we looked away.  Skywarp."

     "Starscream and Skywarp." the High Prince considered.

     Thundercracker repressed the urge to say he liked the names.  This was not his decision to make.  Privately, though, he felt they both were appropriate.  The deafening shriek the pink sparkling had given certainly befitted the name of Starscream, beyond even the blessing as it was meant.  And  Skywarp - well, he did seem quick once he got the chance.

     "Thundercracker, Starscream, and Skywarp," His carrier commented, smile audible. "I like them."

     A low, warm hum came from the Prince. "I can never refuse you anything.  Starscream, and Skywarp it is.  Thundercracker?"

     "Yes sire?" Thundercracker looked up again, more secure in doing so this time, as they both slept on his arms and chest.

     "I can trust you to do your best to help teach them, can't I?  It takes a flock to raise a fledgling, and a Nest for a hatchling.  Can you do this for us?" The question was spoken earnestly, though he almost certainly expected a certain answer.

     Of course, Thundercracker had no problem with this answer. "Yes," He replied. "I swear to assist in any way I can and know how."

     "Good qualifier.  Natural politician, this one." His sire replied with a smirk. "Good, Thundercracker." He brushed his field against his son's, sending affection and even gratitude through it, along with not a little pride. "You can start by staying right where you are until they wake up," Was the next, amused, order.

     Thundercracker grinned and held Starscream and Skywarp close.  He didn't mind at all.

 

 


	2. Thundercracker's Pledge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The young princes receive some very bad news.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starscream and Skywarp are more like two year olds in this chapter, toddlers/Seekerlets. As Cybertronians age in life-stages not necessarily connected to time (though sheer time certainly influences some of them), Thundercracker is still pretty much sixteen.
> 
> Also Seekers are what is called "crepescular", or active at dawn and dusk; they tend to sleep through broad daylight and absolute night.

     "Prince Thundercracker!  My lord!" Silverscape, his sire's aide, called for him, landing in the youngwing's path on his way back to the nest.  The silver mech had to pause, cycling systems on overdrive, for a moment. "I was sent to fetch you.  There's been a disturbance near some of the residential caves.  The Ovicleptor Cult found a way in, through the caves.  There seems to be few and your sire wants you to have experience in dealing with such criminals."

     Thundercracker immediately transformed, pinging his sire's comm signal to locate the mech. "Thank you, Silverscape," He made sure to add as he took off at top speed.

     Just as he drew close to the caves, and began hearing the conflict inside, an ominous rumble was heard from deep in the canyonside.  A burst of metal shavings flew from the outer cliffs as inhabitants fled, most of them unmated and some in trines.  Several cave entrances collapsed, along with the metal inside them.  A shockwave struck the flyers and threw several off-course, Thundercracker not among them as he simply rolled through the wave.  A deafening boom nearly drowned out shrieks and Thundercracker suddenly felt sick as he realized not everyone had escaped.  As the movement died he landed on an old ledge near the destruction, kneeling there, optics scanning it and those who milled around outside.

     "My lord!" Came a shout from below. "I found someone, a survivor from the blast!"

     Thundercracker looked down, pausing a moment, expecting his sire or one of his uncles at least to respond to the call.  When none did he took their place, stubbornly not thinking of why that could be.  He landed beside the unfamiliar blue and gray mech and nodded to him, kneeling beside the shavings-covered victim, who was trapped under a heavy slab of metal and leaking out. "Can you hear me?" He asked gently.

     Shuttered optics opened. "Thundercracker," His carrier's voice breathed, and he flinched, holding back a yelp, his spark stabbed with shock and early grief - there was no way to heal this kind of damage and he knew it.  A weak hand came over to touch his. "None -" a cough and energon spilled from the light purple and blue mech's intakes. "Your sire . . . the Trine . . . didn't . . . not out."

     Thundercracker couldn't hold back the whine this time, though no one would blame him. "No," He denied, even knowing it was true. "They can't - what about Starscream and Skywarp?" He asked desperately. "What am I going to do?"

     There was no answer for him, and cyan optics surveyed his face sadly.  Thundercracker's wings drooped as low as they could go and he bent over his carrier, faceplates wet with coolant tears and grimacing as his helm touched the cracked chestplate. "Carrier," He whimpered.

     "Love - you," The weakened voice worked out, almost unintelligible beneath the static. "All."

     As Thundercracker raised his head to reply, the cyan optics flickered out.  His weak energy field died and the warmth of his spark faded from his chest.  Thundercracker clutched his carrier's hand and released a grieving wail to the sky, alerting every Seeker in audio range of the death.  The mech who had warned him took up the cry - the Princes and the High Prince's Consort had been much-loved by their people, and in one fell swoop, all had been taken from them.

     Thundercracker wasn't sure how long he led the song, only that his voice was hoarse from the painful shrieking that had torn from him.  He only let his voice fall when Silverscape touched his shoulder. "My lord," The silver mech was crying too, his voice shaking. "Your brothers.  They will need you." He took a moment to clear his intakes. "The High Prince made it clear what was to be done with his frame and that of his Conjunx Endura if they were to offline.  I will see to it."

     The navy youngwing hugged him impulsively, and for once from the aide, received it back in kind. "Thank you," Thundercracker whispered, unable to do much else. "I want to see him again - before." He added, voice crackling, before shaking his head as he stepped back, transforming and jetting toward the nest.

 

     Inside it, Starscream and Skywarp, both Seekerlets, bigger, talking in bits now, were crying, a Seekerlet's shrieks and sobs.  Thundercracker's spark ached for them as he darted to the nest.  They'd still had a tentative creation bond with their creators and it had just been brutally severed by the death, and such fragile young beings would have no idea what that pain in their chests meant.  He scooped them both close and cuddled them against his chest, unable to stop crying but trying to hum something soothing through the pain in his vocalizer.

     It was almost a joor before they calmed to sniffles and whimpers of pain.  Skywarp clung to him tightly as Starscream clutched a hand on each of them, shaking. "Thunder," Starscream whimpered. "Why it hurts?"

     Thundercracker's spark jerked again - he wasn't sure how much more of this he could take.  But he had to tell them the truth, before someone came in and tried to convince them everything was alright.  Everything was _not_ alright, but they would have to learn to cope.  They all would. "Our creators," He said, recalibrating his vocalizer and managing to clear it somewhat. "They're gone, Starscream.  They offlined."

     Skywarp sniffled. "When back?"

     Thundercracker's silent sob shook his frame. "They're not - they're not coming back, Sky." He whispered. "They want to, but they - they can't."

     Starscream seemed to understand, as he broke down in tears again, wailing inconsolably.  Skywarp looked confused, but the reverberating grief in his brothers' fields reduced him to a similar state, little claws digging into Thundercracker's armor.  The two Seekerlets sobbed and wailed themselves into a fitful recharge against their brother's frame as midnight approached.

     Watching them fuss, Thundercracker slowly came to realize that his own optics had dried, his coolant reserves expended.  He shuttered them, internally wincing at the burn, before opening them to look down at his brothers again. He stroked the claws of one hand over their heads, through the short red or violet sensory wires.

     It came to him that now, he was the eldest of the royal family.  In effect, he was the High Prince Regent - until his brothers were old enough for the three to either form a Trine, or break off, and find wingmates or Conjunx Endurae.  Until they could be sure who was best suited to the task, the present and future of Vos rested on his wings.  A shudder ran through him.

     Even more intimidating - the fates of his _brothers_ rested on his wings.  It was up to him to balance ruling the city and caring for them, without a mate or a Trine to help him.  He couldn't suppress a small whimper at the thought.  How could he possibly manage?  It hadn't been easy for his sire, even with a Consort and a Trine!

     A soft cry against his chest brought his attention back to the Seekerlets.  Starscream finally lay still, but Skywarp was again crying out softly in his recharge.  He hummed softly, stroking the little light purple Seekerlet again, until he calmed.

     His gaze wandered back to Starscream, who, while still and quiet, had his faceplates twisted in grief. "Until the wind stops, the sky falls, the stars scream, and we land for the very last time," He murmured the familiar vow that had given Starscream his name.  He shuttered his optics, and when he opened them again, their former friendly blue and shifted to a cold cyan. "I will protect you, guide you, and fly by your side." He finished the vow with a promise.

     Until the end of all things, he would be there, for them.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> . . . . thus beginning Thundercracker's transition from "youngwing" teenager to Seeker adulthood.

**Author's Note:**

> I really have no business publishing this right now when I'm still not finished with "Catalysts" elsewhere in the "Origins" verse (in "Autobot Central Command", if you're curious), but I'm a sucker for Seekers and I wanted to get this plot bunny out of my head so I can focus on that fic. Hope you enjoy!


End file.
